BIRMINGHAM, Alabama - Samford's women's basketball team has caught fire at just the right time over the past two seasons. This year, head coach Mike Morris is hoping for the consistency to carry over all season.

The Bulldogs have won the past two Southern Conference Tournaments, advancing to the NCAA Tournament. A core nucleus of "really four players that played a good bit last year" will pair up with some returners who are expected to step up and some talented newcomers. Samford, which went 20-13 last year, was picked fourth in the Southern Conference media and coaches' preseason polls.

Shelby Campbell came off the bench last year and won SoCon Tournament Most Valuable Player award. She'll step into a starting role at a guard spot after scoring 7.5 points per game last year. Senior guard Jazmine Martin also made the all-tournament team. She has also been a bench player, but should start this year.

Samford also returns forward Hannah Dawson, who is going into her fourth year as a starter and 6-foot-3 sophomore Taylor Reece, who started 30 games at center last year.

Martin scored 18 in a recent 49-45 exhibition win over Montevallo and Dawson scored 12. Along with those four, returning junior Kendall Schwantz started at guard.

"We've got a good little core of four players but after that, it's a lot of unknowns," Morris said. "We've got five freshmen and our other returning players will be stepping up to bigger and better roles."

Christy Robinson, a 6-foot-4 junior center, like Schwantz, didn't play much last year but both will play bigger roles this season. Morris also said freshman guards Lydia McGee and Krista Stricklin will play key roles this season.

Samford opens its regular season Sunday with a 1 p.m. game at Florida State. The home opener is part of the Samford Thanksgiving Classic, when the Bulldogs play Alabama State at 4 p.m. on Nov. 23 and Tennessee State at 3 p.m. on Nov. 24.

"The way that we had a couple of our players play at the end of the year, we've got to play that way the whole year," Morris said. "Shelby Campbell and Jazmine Martin really played great in the tournament and we need them to consistently play that way the whole season.

"(Also) how quickly our players can adjust to new roles and if freshmen can step up.

"If those three things happen, I think we can have a chance at the end of the year to do what we've done the last couple of years."